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Graduate Admissions

APPLICATION TO GRADUATE STUDIES IN FRENCH

Deadlines

Applications for graduate study are accepted year-round; however, students are encouraged to apply for Fall (August) matriculation. Completed applications, including all supplemental documents, submitted by January 15 will receive priority consideration for admission and funding. Applicants to the program who wish to be considered for funding through a University Fellowship or Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) appointment should submit applications prior to that date; although in exceptional cases, a student may still be considered for funding after January 15. Please indicate how you intend to fund your graduate education in your statement of purpose or in the online application form.

Prerequisites

In addition to the general admission requirements from the KU Office of Graduate Studies, applicants should have the equivalent of a major in French at the B.A. level, with a minimum of 9 hours of advanced undergraduate course work in French literature. In exceptional cases, applicants who do not have a B.A. in French, but meet the 9 hour literature requirement and have an otherwise stellar application may still be considered for admission.

Required Supplemental Documents

In order to complete the application online, please prepare the following items ahead of time to be uploaded with the online application:

A current résumé or C.V.

Statement of Purpose: This statement should provide the admissions committee with a sense of what you hope to encounter in the graduate school experience, your experience and general research interests at this point in your career, what skills you most need to work on, and what shape you think your career might take--in the academy or outside of it.

A sample essay or research paper in French: A written work to demonstrate your writing skills and basic research capacity in French. For the M.A. program, submit a 5 to 10 page writing sample. For the Ph.D. program, submit a 20-page writing sample.

The names and contact information of three references: These references, preferably academic, will be contacted directly by KU for letters of recommendation. Please alert your references in advance.

Transcripts: Transcripts are required from all institutions from which a degree was obtained, or any institutions attended post-bachelors. Official transcripts that you have opened may be uploaded to the application online and used for admissions consideration, but if you are admitted, official (sealed) transcripts showing degree conferral, if applicable, must also be provided. Send official transcripts to:

For applicants whose native language is not French: submit an mp3 audio file directly to the graduate director, Van Kelly (vkelly@ku.edu), on which the applicant speaks extemporaneously (do not use a prepared script) for approximately five minutes in French, giving an account of background, training, and interests.

For applicants whose native language is not English: submit an mp3 audio file directly to the graduate director, Van Kelly (vkelly@ku.edu), on which the applicant speaks extemporaneously (do not use a prepared script) for approximately five minutes in English, giving an account of background, training, and interests.

GRE scores (if you are a North American applicant): While you may enter your scores on the application, confirmation of scores will need to come directly from GRE. KU's GRE institutional code is 6871. International applicants do not need to submit GRE scores.

Additional Required Supplemental Documents for applicants who want to be considered for the Haitian Creole Studentship

A sample essay or research paper in Haitian Creole: A written work to demonstrate your writing skills and basic research capacity in Haitian Creole. For the M.A. program, submit a 5-7 page writing sample. For the Ph.D. program, submit a minimum 10-page writing sample.

For applicants whose native language is not Haitian Creole: Submit an mp3 audio file directly to the graduate director, Van Kelly (vkelly@ku.edu), on which you will speak extemporaneously (do not use a prepared script) for approximately five minutes in Haitian Creole, giving an account of background, training, and interests.

Please note that the department cannot complete the processing of your application until all supplemental documentation has been received.

Non-Native English Speakers

The University requires all applicants, international or domestic, to demonstrate English proficiency for admission to any graduate program at KU. There are three ways to prove English proficiency:

Declaration of native speaker status on the online application for graduate study.

Graduation with a baccalaureate degree (or higher) earned in residence from an accredited English-medium U.S. college or university or a college or university in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, English-speaking province of Canada, or an English-speaking Caribbean country, with instruction conducted in English. Degrees earned online may not be used to verify English proficiency. Note: this option is not sufficient for employment as a Graduate Teaching Assistant.

Official scores from an English proficiency standardized test (e.g. TOEFL, IELTS-Academic, or PTE), sent by the testing agency to the University of Kansas. Official scores must be less than two years old. Applicants who do not meet the minimum scores should review the English Proficiency Chart, provided via the link above, for information about provisional admission and petition processes based on exceptional circumstances.

Contact

For further information about the graduate application process, please contact: